MY PROJECT
With this project, I aim to prove there are non-binary features and representation in the art and literature of of Hellenistic and Roman Egypt by looking at various sculpture pieces, art, and primary documents from Ancient Greek and Latin authors. Many of the art pieces will be analyzed after I help to 3D scan them through a project at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in the Egyptology department with Dr. Lisa Haney and Dr. Josh Cannon. Therefore I will focus on learning to use such equipment and to use both artistic and historic analysis of the artworks to prove non-binary representation, and also prove why there are more representations in the Hellenistic Egyptian culture than the Roman Egyptian culture. By looking at the culture subjugation within Egypt by the Greeks and Romans, I can therefore aim to prove the vast influence each society has. My mentor, Dr. Christian Wildberg, from the Classics department is helping me to complete this project as he was the one who introduced me to a Hellenistic Egyptian inspired writing called Asclepius, which I will include a literary analysis of as well in the existing Latin. I believe this research is important in order to understand the historical context of gender theory and how it relates to the struggles people still face under the enforced binary gender roles. I hope to then further this research and complete it through a Bachelor’s of Philosophy in the oncoming semesters.
ABOUT ME
Hello, my name is Emily Wiley and I am a rising junior. My current majors and minors are Classics and Anthropology with a Museum Studies Minor. A unique fact about myself has to be that I have a collection of artificial turtles which I collect every time I visit a beach, aquarium, or anywhere else. I even have a turtle bottle-opener.
In the long-term future, I wish to pursue a career in the field of Mediterranean Archaeology, researching sex and gender in the Classical world. In order to accomplish this goal, I hope to get into a PhD program to continue my education and obtain a job in the academic field. Under the inter-disciplinary focus of the Brackenridge fellowship, I hope to use this continuous support in order to further my research and obtain new perspectives on how to reach people outside my specific discipline. Through the various workshops offered, I also hope to obtain new skills and gain insight into the best ways to accomplish my research and other necessary skills, like applying to graduate school and learning the basics of grant writing for my future endeavors.